Lately, a lot of social media sites have been popping up, largely due to the desire for alternatives to currently existing platforms. While most of the new platforms tend to imitate the current ones, seven39 comes with a gimmick: the 90’s-style social media site is only available for 3 hours a day.
seven39 advertises itself as a platform that promises no endless scrolling or FOMO. The site claims that social media is better when everyone is online together and promises three hours of enjoyment while the site is open, which is 7.39PM to 10:39PM EST each day. For Malaysians, that translates to 7.39AM to 10:39AM, which means the site is only available in the morning when most people are working or at school.
According to The Verge, the site features a single chronological feed and resembles a Twitter clone. Users can create posts of up to 200 characters in length, as well as like and reply to other posts. Users can also upload images, which one notable user reportedly uses to share their doodles of rats on sticky notes daily. At the moment, there are no reposts or quote posts. The posts are also seemingly of the typical fare: self-introductions, memes, and pet photos.
The creator of seven39, Mark Lyons, says that the site was designed to have a retro feel. His goal was to explore ways to be social online before the era of smartphones. He also views the platform as an experiment and is fine if the site remains small.
Currently, the site is home to roughly 3,000 users, which is not a sizeable community by any means. Of course, the time difference is a limiting factor as not everyone will be free to be on the site during its operating hours.
(Source: The Verge)
